Chicago Bears: 4 positional battles to watch closely during the offseason
Cornerback
Next up is the cornerback position. Last year the team had Prince Amukamara on the opposite side of Kyle Fuller. Amukamara was decent for the Chicago Bears but had a down year last year. Not to mention, he was an easy cap casualty decision.
Amukamara was never much of a game-changer, but he was consistent. He had double-digit pass deflections the last two seasons, but in 2019 he allowed a 66.2 percent completion percentage on passes thrown his way. He also let up two touchdowns and a 105.2 quarterback rating.
Letting Amukamara go left a large hole on the Bears defense. To help try and fill that hole, Ryan Pace not only signed one of the top CFL free agent targets in Tre Roberson, he also drafted a corner with the 50th overall pick. Looking at the roster, the starting outside corner should come down to a three-man race.
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Kevin Toliver is an undrafted free agent who many thought could be the starter in 2020. He has seen two starts in his career and has done nothing spectacular. During the last two years, Toliver has allowed over a 67 percent completion percentage and one touchdown on only 34 targets. He was hardly going to be the answer.
Tre Roberson is an ex-college quarterback who found his way to the CFL after not making it to the NFL — at least not right away. Roberson was close to making it to the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Vikings, but the Vikings had him slotted to play defensive back. Roberson did not last long on the Vikings’ practice squad and ended up in the CFL. He learned how to play corner quickly and was the most coveted CFL free agent this offseason.
Roberson was likely going to be the starter opposite Kyle Fuller unless Ryan Pace made another move. Well, that move happened in the 2020 NFL Draft when he drafted Jaylon Johnson with the 50th overall pick. Johnson had a first-round grade by many analysts and was a force on the outside for Utah. He comes with an aggressive play style and has the potential of being better than Kyle Fuller. His downfall is his injury history with his shoulders, but if he is healthy, watch out.